It's amazing how time flies so fast when the kids are little. It was almost like I woke up one day and Madeline was a little girl and not really a toddler anymore. Madeline had lots of FIRSTS this month. At the beginning of the month she had her very first dentist appointment. She did really well sitting in the chair at first. Then she wanted me to sit with her so I held her on my lap. She let Dr. Patterson count all of her teeth and she let the tech brush her teeth.
 |  |
Right before the kids went back to school, we decided to transition Madeline from a crib to a toddler bed. I knew that she could stay in bed all night since she slept in a toddler bed during our family reunion over the summer. Mike and Andrew worked together to take the front railing off and replace it with a toddle rail. Madeline was so excited. She actually did really well transitioning to a bed with more freedom. At night she never got out of her bed but during nap time she will still occasionally play in and around her bed before she finally falls asleep. I feel like it's a win because she doesn't come out of her room when it's time to sleep.
One of the things we are trying to focus on more is potty time. Madeline really doesn't have any desire to potty train but that is not to say we aren't trying. I bought her some pull up diapers so that she could learn how to take them on and off by herself. That was step number one. Step two was learning how to get on and off the potty by herself. She can actually do it without using a stool. I'm not sure how she swings her leg all the way around but she somehow manages to get on toilet by herself. Finally, she learned how to wash her hands by herself. The most important piece now was actually sitting on the potty long enough to actually go. We tried reading books, singing songs, and eating snacks but none of those things really helped. The only thing that got her to sit on the potty by herself was knowing that she had to go and not having her pull up or diaper on. I let her roam around naked and I went about my business in the kitchen. I noticed that she walked back in the bathroom and got on the potty and was bracing herself against the wall. Oh boy...she was doing something. She did actually go in the potty but it kind of scared her and she started to cry. I'm not sure if I will be able to convince her to do it again but at least she did it once.
 |  |
Since Madeline is almost 3 years old, we figured it was time to give her an activity that she could participate in. Since I did ballet and tap with the other girls it seemed like the natural thing to do for Madeline. I found out from a friend about a good ballet/tap program and we did a trial class to see how she would respond. I was so surprised at how well she listened to her teacher and how well behaved she was in the class. When the class was finished, she was so happy.
Even though Madeline had lots of FIRSTS this month, she also had lots of repeated cuteness from things she does all the time. Some of my favorite moments this month from her was her love of playing in the grass, mopping the floor with me, talking on her pretend phone and actually pausing as if she were actually talking to someone, using her own resistant band when I was doing my PT exercises, playing with puzzles and telling me the numbers as she put them in the puzzle, and having a blast during bath time. There is never a dull moment when Madeline is around.
 |  |
 |  |
